Freight RFQ Comparison Template (Excel)
A free Excel template to request and compare freight quotes: describe the shipment once, send the same request to every carrier, then compare their base rate, fuel surcharge, accessorials and other charges on one all-in total, ranked, with transit time, validity and exclusions beside it.
Download the Excel templateFree, no sign-up. Opens in Excel, Google Sheets and LibreOffice.
Mirage does this work from your own documents. See freight RFQ automation
Who uses it, and when
Shippers' transport buyers and logistics coordinators use it for spot shipments and lane tenders; freight forwarders use it to compare the carriers they subcontract to before quoting their own customer.
It is built for the common case: a few carriers, one lane or one shipment, quotes arriving by email in different layouts. A full annual tender with hundreds of lanes belongs in a procurement tool; the logic of comparing all-in totals on the same description is the same.
What is in the file
- RFQ sent
- What every carrier is asked: shipper, contact, origin and destination addresses, commodity, packaging, pieces, weight, dimensions or volume, hazardous class, equipment, pickup window, delivery deadline, accessorials required, insurance, payment terms, quote validity and the deadline for quotes.
- Comparison
- The shipment summary, then one row per carrier quote: base rate, fuel surcharge percentage, fuel amount (computed), accessorials quoted, other charges, all-in total (computed), transit days, validity, rank by total and difference to the lowest (computed), exclusions and notes.
- Instructions
- How to fill it, step by step.
Column by column
- Carrier
- The company quoting, and the contact if several people quote for it.
- Base rate
- The linehaul price as quoted, before fuel and accessorials.
- Fuel surcharge %
- The percentage the carrier applies for the week of pickup, from its fuel table. Some carriers quote it as an amount: divide by the base rate.
- Fuel amount
- Computed: base rate × fuel percentage.
- Accessorials quoted
- Liftgate, residential, inside delivery, appointment, hazardous handling: the ones your RFQ required, at the carrier's prices.
- Other charges
- Anything else on the quote: tolls, border fees, documentation fees.
- All-in total
- Computed: base + fuel + accessorials + other. This is the number to compare, never the base rate alone.
- Transit days and valid until
- The service offered and how long the price holds.
- Rank and difference to lowest
- Computed among the quotes entered; the lowest all-in total is highlighted.
- Exclusions and notes
- What the quote does not cover: detention terms, free time, weight limits, liability cover. Two quotes with different exclusions are not the same price.
How to use it
- Fill the RFQ sent sheet and send exactly that description to every carrier, with the deadline.
- As quotes arrive, enter one row per carrier on the Comparison sheet: base rate, fuel percentage, accessorials, other charges, transit and validity.
- Write each quote's exclusions and conditions in the last column.
- Read the ranking on all-in total, then weigh transit, validity, exclusions and the carrier's record before you award.
- Keep the file: it is the record of why a carrier was chosen, and next time's starting point for the same lane.
Limits
- The comparison is as good as the request: quotes on different descriptions are not comparable, whatever the sheet says.
- Fuel surcharge changes weekly. A quote valid for 30 days may be invoiced at a different fuel percentage than quoted; the audit template checks that later.
- Twelve quote rows; copy rows to add more.
A worked example
A full truckload Lyon to Milan, 18 pallets, 14 t, tail-lift delivery required. Carrier A: base 1,200, fuel 22% (264), liftgate 120, total 1,584, 2 days. Carrier B: base 1,150, fuel 25% (287.50), liftgate 150, toll fee 60, total 1,647.50, 2 days. Carrier C: base 1,100, fuel 22% (242), liftgate excluded, total 1,342, 3 days.
On base rate, C is cheapest by 100. On all-in total, C is still lowest, but its quote excludes the liftgate your RFQ required: adding A's liftgate price as a plug brings it to 1,462, still lowest, with a slower transit. The decision is then between 122 saved and one more day.
Mistakes to avoid
- Comparing base rates. Fuel and accessorials are often 20% to 40% of the total, and they are where quotes differ most.
- Sending each carrier a slightly different description. The quotes then answer different questions.
- Ignoring the exclusions column. A low quote that excludes what you need is not low.
- Forgetting validity. A quote that expires before pickup will be re-quoted, usually higher.
- Not keeping the file. The next RFQ on the same lane starts from these numbers.
Questions
What is a freight RFQ?
A request for quotation sent to carriers or forwarders: the shipment or lane described in full, with the deadline for their price. It is what makes quotes comparable.
What should a freight RFQ include?
Origin and destination, commodity, packaging, pieces, weight and dimensions, hazardous class if any, equipment, pickup and delivery windows, accessorials required, insurance, payment terms and the date quotes are due.
Why compare all-in totals rather than rates?
Because the invoice is the all-in total. Fuel surcharges and accessorials vary by carrier and can reverse the ranking of base rates.
How many carriers should I ask?
Three to five quotes usually show the market for a spot shipment. For a regular lane, a tender with more carriers once or twice a year, then spot quotes against it.
Does the template work for ocean and air freight?
Yes, with the columns renamed to the charges of the mode: ocean freight, BAF, THC and documentation fees for sea; freight per kg, fuel and security surcharges for air. The all-in comparison is the same.
Quotes read in whatever format they arrive
This template compares the quotes you type in. Mirage deploys AI agents that answer RFQs against rate tables and lane history, and read incoming carrier quotes into one comparison, for your team to award.